1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a conveyor system and a re-railer for the conveyor adapted for use in a mining scheme.
2. Summary of the Invention
A typical mining scheme for mining coal involves a miner which removes coal from a coal face and deposits the coal onto a transporter for conveying the coal out of the mine. In order to transport the coal from the face where it is mined, a mobile flexible conveyor train can be used to transport the coal to a fixed panel conveyor which transports the coal to a convenient location for removal from the mine.
In the typical scheme of using this arrangement of apparatus to mine coal, the panel conveyor belt is positioned in a belt entry extending into the coal passageway. A mine roof mounted rail system carries a flexible conveyor train over the panel belt and is positioned between the panel belt and the miner to transport the coal from the miner to the panel belt.
As the belt entry is mined to about 100 feet, a crosscut passageway is mined at an angle to the belt entry. The crosscut is then mined in a straight run, making breakthroughs into the previously mined track, intake and return entry passageways. As the crosscut is being mined in this fashion, the rail system is temporarily hung from the mine roof in the crosscut. After completion of the crosscut, the return entry, intake entry and track entry are mined in a direction parallel to the belt entry. Thereafter, the flexible conveyor train is withdrawn into the belt entry and the rail system in the crosscut is removed. Thereafter, the sequence is repeated with the belt entry being extended, another crosscut mined and the rail system temporarily installed into the mine roof in the crosscut.
To alleviate the problem of temporarily hanging the rail system in each crosscut, it is desirable to provide a flexible conveyor train which can be self-supporting on the mine floor and removed from the rail system when making the crosscut and be realigned with the rail system when withdrawn from the crosscut during this type of mining sequences.